Alstroemeria Interesting Facts AKA Peruvian Lily

Throughout history, herbs and spices have been extremely popular, used as medicines and aphrodisiacs as well as making their way into dinner. A plant that the Romans (and ancient Greeks and Egyptians) would have been familiar with was Silphium. They thought it was the finest of all seasonings, as well as a top notch medicinal plant. The Romans got a taste for meat from animals fed on Silphium, and it seems that the herb may well then have been grazed into extinction. It never seemed to make it into cultivation. Another possible explanation of Silphium’s disappearance is that a change in the Mediterranean climate meant it could no longer thrive, and died out naturally. According to Pliny, the last known Silphium plant was given to Emperor Nero as a gift.

The new grapevines I ordered (from Victoriana Nursery Gardens) arrived last week. The planters for them should arrive this week…. I want the vines to grow over the arbour, and we’ve chosen a pair of wooden planters that can be fixed to the arbour, so that the whole lot can be moved together should the need ever arise. The vines are going to be long-term residents of the garden, after all. It won’t be too long before I can enjoy cooking with vine leaves, although a decent crop of seedless dessert grapes might take a little longer.

Gardeners of the Galaxy is three years old! To celebrate, Emma the Space Gardener has been delving into the archives, digging deeper into three related astrobotany stories from days gone by, which all have something to do with trees.

By following Kennebec Potatoes Growing Tips and Facts, you can enjoy homegrown, delicious, and nutritious Kennebec potatoes in your meals!

With over 30% of Brits admitting their mother is the most important person in their life and half coming to realise they are indeed turning into their mums, it’s no surprise we don’t scrimp around Mother’s Sunday.

My name is Diane Porter, and I live in Nova Scotia, Canada. We are a Zone 5 area here, so I like pretty hardy plants. Daylilies (Hemerocallis, Zones 4–9 for most cultivars) fit my garden perfectly. I have always enjoyed gardening and  actually worked at a local garden center for a few seasons. The gardening bug hit hard!

Snapdragons or better known as Antirrhinum are an easy flower to grow and they provide lots of colour with a distinctive scent. Good F1 plants can grow more than 2′ tall and if pinched out they bush out quite well. Available in a wide range of colours I try and grow the same colours together to enhance the effect.

Picnic in the shade of Cherry Trees

You don’t need global warming to get a warm glow in your garden if you plant some Canna. The fiery hot flowers and leaves on some Cannas are hard to beat and are worth a place in any passionate garden.

Alstroemeria is a beautiful flower also known as Peruvian Lily or Parrot Lily.

Allium christophii, common name Star of Persia or Persian onion. Perhaps they have dropped the religious ‘h’  to become Allium cristophii as a nod to the Iranian roots.

Schizanthus pinnatus ‘Hit Parade’ growing in a conservatory at Normanby Hall Country Park Scunthope.